#155 Fairey Flycatcher

Building the Fairey Flycatcher stationed at HMS Hermes, China Station, 1930. This is the Armory Models Group kit in 1:48, with a hand carved prop and wood decals from Proper Plane of Ukraine. All upstaged by a couple of cheeky seagulls.

Notes

The Fairey Flycatcher was a British single-seat biplane carrier-borne fighter aircraft made by Fairey Aviation Company which served from 1923 to 1934. It was produced with a conventional undercarriage for carrier use, although this could be exchanged for floats for catapult use aboard capital ships.

The Fairey Flycatcher in Royal Navy service during the 1920s and early 1930s was finished in what was known as “silver dope” — a light, metallic-looking finish applied to the fabric surfaces — with metal panels usually painted in a very similar light grey-silver shade so the whole aircraft appeared a uniform pale silver.

The navigation lights on RNAS (Royal Naval Air Service) and later FAA (Fleet Air Arm) aircraft — including biplane floatplanes like the Fairey Flycatcher — followed the same international standard used for ships and aircraft since the early 20th century.

For the Fairey Flycatcher (introduced in the 1920s), the wingtip navigation lights would have been:

• Port (left) wingtip – Red light
• Starboard (right) wingtip – Green light

The Kit

Fairey Flycatcher (on Wooden Floats) + Extras 1/48 is the Armory Models AR48003 kit, packaged with some extras by Proper Plane:

• Proper Plywood Decals
• Proper Wooden propeller

Paint Scheme

Scheme 4: Fairey Flycatcher, s/n N9961/9, 403th Flight, HMS Hermes, China Station, 1930

I made the mistake of thinking the main fabric fuselage was white, and that’s how I’ve finished the model. It wasn’t particularly clear in the Armory instructions, but as I got towards the end of the build I started to doubt the choice. A little research confirmed that I as wrong, and that the main fuselage should be “silver dope”. It was too late in the build to fix that without significant effort—I’d already laid down decals for instance—so I’ll just notch this up as a “lesson learned”, and appreciate the build for what it is: a somewhat “what if” representation.

Build Log

Working on the floats first..

Using the wood decals from ProperPlane

A little fiddly to apply, but got the job done..

Most of the construction effort is in the cockpit!

Starting work on on the motor.

Painting the fuselage

I airbrushing the tail insignia

Airbrushing the main insignia

Not too bad - a little touch-up required for some bleed of the blue

With the main decals applied..

Final Rigging

Engine and final details complete

Display Base

Concept…

Making the dock section

Plane in place

Adding Some “Character”

Sculpting a few seagulls..

Adding them to the base..

Final Gallery

Fairey Flycatcher, China Station, 1930. This is the Armory Models Group kit in 1:48, with a hand carved prop and wood decals from Proper Plane of Ukraine. All upstaged by a couple of cheeky seagulls.

Credits and References

• this project on scalemates
• Fairey Flycatcher floatplane on wooden floats Armory No. AR48003 1:48
  • on scalemates
  • on armory models
  • on proper plane with extras (this is the version I bought)
  • instructions

Research References

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fairey_Flycatcher
• https://www.lookandlearn.com/history-images/M559297/The-Fairey-Flycatcher

FAIREY FLYCATCHER: A Pioneering Interwar Carrier Fighter

YouTube by Not A Pound For Air To Ground

Fairey Flycatcher with and without floats on aircraft carriers. Archive film 62530

YouTube by HuntleyFilmArchives

Build References

• https://imodeler.com/2024/11/fairey-flycatcher/ - beautifully finished, same variant as I am building

Armory Models 1/48 Fairey Flycatcher (48002) Review

YouTube by DetailScaleView

First impressions, Armoury models, 1/48, Fairey Flycatcher

YouTube by Modelkit Stuff